Operators can be overloaded and struggle to make sense of and prioritize multiple tasks. Task selection in these cases is of utmost importance. We replicated an experiment using the Multi Attribute Task Battery II (MATB II) for validating a model of strategic task switching (STOM), adding eye tracking measurement, resulting in a new assessment. Task difficulty affected how operators switched tasks, while priority had little to no effect. Newly measured for STOM, eye tracking revealed a link between task difficulty and time spent performing a task but failed to meet predictions for interest and priority effects. The outcome of the validation effort as it relates to the STOM model, as well as eye tracking implications, are discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Barg-WalkowL. H.RogersW. A. (2017). Modeling Task Scheduling in Complex Healthcare Environments: Identifying Relevant Factors. Proc of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 61(1), 772–775.
2.
Barg-WalkowL. H.ThomasR. P.WickensC. D.RogersW. A. (2019). Modeling task scheduling decisions of emergency department physicians. Human Factors.
3.
FreedM. (2000). Reactive prioritization. Proc NASA International Workshop on Planning and Scheduling in Space.
4.
GilbertK. M.WickensC. D. (2017). Experimental evaluation of STOM in a business setting. Proc of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 61, 767–771.
5.
GutzwillerR. S.SitzmanD. M. (2017). Examining task priority effects in multi-task management. Proc of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 61, 762–766.
6.
GutzwillerR. S.WickensC. D.CleggB. A. (2015). The role of individual differences in executive attentional networks and switching choices in multi-task management. Proc of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 59, 632–636.
7.
GutzwillerR. S.WickensC. D.CleggB. A. (2016). The role of time on task in multi-task management. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 5, 176–184.
8.
GutzwillerR. S.WickensC. D.CleggB. A. (2019). The role of reward and effort over time in task switching. Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science, 20(2), 196–214.
9.
RégisN.DehaisF.RachelsonE.ThoorisC.PizziolS.CausseM.TessierC. (2014). Formal detection of attentional tunneling in human operator-automation interactions. IEEE Transactions on Human-Machine Systems, 44(3), 326–336.
10.
SalvucciD.TaatgenN. A. (2011). The multitasking mind. Oxford University Press, Inc.
11.
Santiago-EspadaY.MyerR. R.LatorellaK. A.ComstockJ. R. (2011). The Multi-Attribute Task Battery II (MATB-II)Software for Human Performance and Workload Research: A User’s Guide. NASA Tech Memorandum 2011-217164, 1–269.
12.
SheridanT. (2007). Attention and its allocation: Fragments of a model. In KramerA.WiegmannD. A.KirlikA. (Eds.), Attention: From Theory to Practice (16–26). Oxford University Press.
13.
WickensC. D. (2002). Multiple resources and performance prediction. Theoretical Issues in Ergonomics Science,3(2), 159–77.
14.
WickensC. D. (2005). Attentional tunneling and task management. Proc of the 13th Int Symp on Aviation Psych, December, 1–11.
15.
WickensC. D. (2008). Multiple resources and mental workload. Human Factors, 50(3), 449–455.
16.
WickensC. D. (2015). Noticing events in the visual workplace: The SEEV and NSEEV models. In HoffmanR.ParasuramanR. (Eds.), The Cambridge Handbook of Applied Perception Research (pp. 749– 768). Cambridge University Press.
17.
WickensC. D.GutzwillerR. S.SantamariaA. (2015). Discrete task switching in overload: Two meta-analyses and a model. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 79, 79–84.
18.
WickensC. D.GutzwillerR. S. (2017). The status of the Strategic Task Overload Model (STOM) for predicting multi-task management. Proc of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 61, 757–761.
19.
WickensC. D.GutzwillerR. S.VieaneA.CleggB. A.SebokA.JanesJ. (2016). Time sharing between robotics and process control: Validating a model of attention switching. Human Factors, 58(2), 322–343.
20.
WickensC. D.SantamariaA.SebokA. (2013). A computational model of task overload management and task switching. Proc of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, 57, 763–767.
21.
YoungM. S.BrookhuisK. A.WickensC. D.HancockP. A. (2015). State of science: mental workload in ergonomics. Ergonomics, 58(1), 1–17).
